


The Sleeping Phase

by BabyBottlePop



Series: Day by Day, Night by Night [11]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Age Play, Alternate Universe, Asthma, Baby Louis, Baby Niall, Daddy Harry, Diapers, Family Fluff, Infantilism, M/M, Non-Sexual Age Play, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-19
Updated: 2017-03-19
Packaged: 2018-10-07 14:15:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,586
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10362282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BabyBottlePop/pseuds/BabyBottlePop
Summary: “That makes six nights in a row,” Harry informed Nick later in the day as he finished loading bottles into the dishwasher. “The first two times it was a bad dream, but now he doesn’t even give an excuse.”Or, Niall has developed the habit of wanting to sleep in Harry's bed every night.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a short little thing I wrote the other day, I hope it's alright!

At half past two in the morning, Harry was shaken awake by the shoulder. He opened his bleary eyes to see a dark figure holding a teddy bear standing closely to the bed.

 

“Daddy, wanna sleep with you.”

 

Harry frowned through a yawn. “Niall, there’s a reason you have a crib. Babies aren’t meant to sleep in big beds all the time.”

 

Niall’s lower lip jutted out. “But Daddy, I want to sleep with you.”

 

Harry rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “I know you do baby. It’s okay sometimes, but you’ve been in my bed practically every night this week.”

 

Niall only continued to stare at him, on the verge of creating waterworks. Harry definitely couldn’t say no to that face, so he reached out to help the baby into his bed, settling him between himself and Nick. The baby was immediately content, chewing the ear of his stuffed bear as he closed his eyes.

 

There went the rest of a good night’s sleep. Niall was a very active sleeper, and having three people in the bed meant both Harry and Nick were victim to being kneed in the stomach and elbowed in the face multiple times throughout the night.

 

When morning came around, Harry was awoken by having his eye poked.

 

“Daddy, the sun came up!” Niall informed him cheerfully. Harry looked at the clock, groaning when it was only six in the morning. Usually his babies slept until at least seven. One thing Harry knew for sure was that once one of his littles was awake in the morning, there was no getting him back to sleep until naptime.

 

Harry grabbed Niall’s hand before he could poke Nick. “Let Nicky sleep Ni, he had a long day yesterday.”

 

* * *

 

“That makes six nights in a row,” Harry informed Nick later in the day as he finished loading bottles into the dishwasher. “The first two times it was a bad dream, but now he doesn’t even give an excuse.”

 

“It’s developed into a habit,” Nick said. “I’ll tell you one thing though, that baby has one hell of an arm. You ought to sign him up for baby boxing or something.”

 

“I just don’t understand why it’s become a nightly thing,” Harry continued on. “I mean, I’ve let both the boys sleep in my bed before, when they’ve been poorly or frightened. But it’s never gone on this long, as I’ve made it clear that babies sleep in cribs.”

 

“Maybe something’s bothering him,” Nick suggested. “Stress can cause sleep difficulties.”

 

“It could be stress,” Harry agreed. “But I’ve tried asking him, and I can’t think of anything that would be the problem. He’s been having fun at playgroup, eating well, getting along with everybody...during the day he’s completely normal.”

 

“Well,” Nick shrugged helplessly. “Sometimes littles just go through phases. We’ll either have to break him out of the habit, or try and wait it out. Waiting it out might take a very long time though.”

 

“Yeah,” Harry sighed. “I know.”

 

* * *

 

The following night, Harry did not wake up to Niall, but instead to coughing coming from the monitor. It sounded heavier than normal, and because Harry never took any chances, he quickly made his way to the nursery.

 

“Hi baby boy,” Harry whispered, rubbing Louis’ back as coughs wracked his small frame. “You okay?”

 

Louis blinked hazily, more asleep than awake. The coughing had lessened, but his breathing was still slightly labored.

 

Harry was already unlatching the sides of the crib. “You’re coming to sleep with Daddy, okay lovey?”

 

As quietly as he could, Harry gathered the sickly babe into his arms, sighing in relief when Niall was seemingly still sound asleep in his own crib. He headed back to his room with Louis, who was still more half asleep than anything else.

 

The lamp was turned on and Nick was sitting up in bed when they returned, ready to give Louis a once over. It was times like these when Harry was grateful to be dating a doctor.

 

“He’ll be okay,” Nick whispered after giving the little a quick once over, planting a kiss on Louis’ sleepy warm cheek. “Are you keeping him in here?”

 

“Yeah,” Harry said, absentmindedly rubbing Louis’ back. “Just to be safe.”

 

That’s when someone else made an appearance into the bedroom.

 

“Daddy,” Niall pattered into the room, dragging his teddy along as usual.

 

Harry’s heart sank. His bed was crowded enough with three. If he tried to fit both babies into his bed, nobody would get any sleep, and he or Nick would probably be shoved off.

 

It was time to try and break Niall’s developed habit.

 

Harry held out his hand for Niall to take. “Niall love, you’re going to be sleeping in your own crib tonight.”

 

The baby’s lower lip jutted out. “Don’t wanna….”

 

Harry prayed that there would be no tantrums. It was already two in the morning. “I’ll stay with you for a bit, until you fall asleep.”

 

Niall looked like he was about to protest, but Harry didn’t give him the chance to.

 

“Babe, I’ll be back in a bit,” He whispered to Nick.

 

“Mmmm,” Nick hummed in acknowledgement. His boyfriend’s eyes were closed, and Louis was snuggled up to him, already asleep. He set up a few pillows in his empty spot, so that Louis wouldn’t roll off the bed, before going into action.

 

The daddy took Niall into his arms. He discreetly checked the baby’s diaper to make sure it was dry, and it was. He grew concerned as Niall began to tremble in his arms when they neared the bedroom.

 

“Honey, we need to talk about this. Why can’t you sleep in your crib?”

 

Niall pressed his face into Harry’s neck. “I j-just want you Daddy.”

 

“I’m not going anywhere baby,” Harry murmured as they reached the nursery. “Never. Your crib is safe and snug, with all your blankies and stuffies. You even have Lou in here, except for tonight. You don’t want to always leave him alone in here, do you?”

 

By this point Harry had set Niall down in his crib, the sidebar staying down as usual. Niall stayed stiff as the caregiver arranged the blankets around him and then used a hand to smooth his hair back.

 

“There we go, all tucked in,” Harry sat cross-legged on the floor next to the crib. “I’m right here babe, close your eyes.”

 

Harry’s efforts to get Niall back to sleep were a no-go. Every time he thought Niall had drifted off he’d attempt to leave, only to be stopped by a very much awake and panicked baby. In the end he’d merely fallen asleep himself on the floor, his poor back already protesting.

 

* * *

 

“Nicky, Daddy’s napping on the floor!” Louis whispered in the morning, seemingly scandalized.

 

“Shh,” Nick held a finger to his lips, carrying the little over to the changing table. As he got Louis ready for the day, the caregiver noticed that they were getting low on diapers. He’d make a run to the store and take Louis with him in order to give Harry and Niall more time to sleep.

 

Nick helped maneuver Harry into the big bed. “Have a nice lay in darling,” He whispered to him. Harry vaguely acknowledged his words, letting out a hum of appreciation and stretching out over the comfortable mattress.

Once he made sure that Niall was still fast asleep, Nick brought Louis downstairs.

 

“What’ll it be for breakfast babe, a baba or scrambled eggs?”

 

“Baba!” Louis demanded, so Nick got to work warming milk on the stove.

 

“We’re going to let Niall and your daddy sleep for awhile,” Nick informed Louis a few minutes later as they curled up on the couch together, Louis drinking his baba. “How would you like to take a trip to the store with me when you finish your baba?”

 

“Mmm!” Louis hummed in agreement, suckling down his breakfast faster.

 

Nick rested a hand on his soft baby tummy. “Hey now, don’t go too fast Louis.”

 

His warning only caused the little to burst into a fit of giggles, causing Nick to roll his eyes in exasperation. Louis stopped after a moment, eyes going wide as his body went rigid. He let out a gurgled burp, and Nick suddenly had an combo of milk and stomach acid all over his shirt.

 

“What did I tell you?” Nick’s nose wrinkled in disgust. “Are you alright?”

 

“Yeah, m’sorry Nicky,” Louis replied, eyes wide.

 

“It’s alright. You wait here while I change my shirt. Then we’ll head to the store.”

 

Going to the store with one little was much more easier than two. Nick had been shopping with Niall and Louis together multiple times by himself, and it was quite the challenge. Between the babies sneaking things into the cart or attempting to wander off, Nick had always wondered how on earth Harry managed it so easily.

 

With one baby though, Nick could keep a tight hold on Louis’ hand and another on the basket. Louis for the most part was being very well behaved, likely because it was barely past eight in the morning.

 

“Nicky, do you get moneys from being a doctor?”

 

Nick laughed in surprise. “That’s right Louis. It’s a job, which means I get paid for it.”

 

“But not a lot of moneys,” Louis corrected him sadly, resting his head against the caregiver’s shoulder.

 

Nick snorted, fondly sorting out Louis’ morning tufts of hair. “What’s all this about, love? Why are you thinking about money so much? That’s nothing for you to worry about.”

 

“But you don’t have moneys for a bed!” Louis told him worriedly, teeth gnawing at his bottom lip. “You’re always sharing Daddy’s bed. Daddy doesn’t want me or Ni-Ni in his bed, so he probably doesn’t like you in there all the time either.”

 

That certainly hadn’t been anything that Nick had expected to hear. He brought a hand up to his mouth, trying in earnest to smother his built up chuckles.

 

“I don’t want Daddy to be mad at you,” Louis continued to speak, blue eyes filled with anxiousness. “You can’t leave Nicky, I _need_ you. And Niall needs you, and- Daddy needs you too.”

 

In an instant, all previous feelings of humor had vanished.

 

“Oh, love, come here.” Nick wrapped him tighter in his arms. It was times like these when he felt so overwhelmingly lucky to be where he was right now, surrounded by such an amazing family. He was honored to be included in it all.

 

“Now you listen here, Louis William Styles. I’m not planning on ever going away, alright? Even if your daddy was mad at me, and I _promise_ he isn't, we would work it out.”

 

The little seemed to relax a bit from his reassurance.

 

“And as for the bed situation,” Nick went on. “Your Daddy doesn’t mind me sleeping there. Remember how we all had a talk, about how your daddy and me have a special relationship?”

 

“With special kissies,” Louis said in remembrance. “Not the kind that you give me and Ni-Ni. You and Daddy’s kissies and too long and yucky.”

 

Nick laughed. “That’s right. And since we’re both caregivers, it’s alright to share a bed. You and Niall are babies though, which is why you sleep in cribs, to keep you safe and comfortable.”

 

“I like my crib,” Louis proudly informed the caregiver, and Nick squeezed his hand in affection.

 

They reached the diaper aisle.

 

“Now let’s see, where's your diapers Lou,” Nick muttered, mostly to himself, as he scanned the selections. Harry stuck to a specific brand for the boys, Little Snug&Soft super dry. It took him a moment, but then he found them and picked out the right size.

 

It was was fun, doing thing like this. Although Nick’s job allowed him to spend time with plenty of littles and children, they were either sickly and sad, or healthy and coming in for a check up, which meant Nick almost always had to give booster shots.

 

It was much more different with Louis and Niall. Around them, he wasn’t Dr. Grimshaw, he was Nicky. Nicky got to feed them bottles, play with them, sing them songs, read them stories....the list went on. It was basically like having two littles of his own. Hell, he considered them his babies already, thought about them like that whenever they crossed his mind (which was often).

 

Despite not having even dated for more than a year yet, Nick already felt properly in love with Harry. There wasn’t any sort of reason not to love him. He was nothing but sweet, actions always endearing and good hearted. He was a family man, extremely good looking, and very good in bed.

 

Nick felt blessed to be considered so loved by the babies. He knew that they were Harry’s world. If Niall or Louis had rejected him in the beginning, Nick knew his life would be very different right now.

 

When they returned home, Harry and Niall were just waking up.

 

“I’ve been doing some thinking,” Harry told Nick, when the boys were outside playing. “I think I have a plan.”

 

“Good, whatever it is, I hope it helps. This whole thing is affecting Louis too,” Nick then went and informed Harry on what Louis had brought up at the store. It brought both chuckles and endearment to both of their faces.

 

* * *

 

The plan was set into motion the following night.

 

“Right,” Harry nodded to himself, looking at the new set up to his room. Well, calling it that was a little bit too much. There was simply a new, portable crib set up next to Harry’s side of the bed.

 

This crib was nothing like the babies’ cribs in the nurseries. Those ones were large and spacious with solid wooden bars and plush bedding, mattresses, and fun decor. This crib was a foldout, with thin metal bars and an even thinner mattress. It wouldn’t be the coziest thing to sleep on, but the plan was to only have it as a temporary thing anyway.

 

“Niall, Louis, this is where you’ll be sleeping from now on, if you choose to leave your own cribs. No more big bed.”

 

Louis appeared indifferent to the crib, while Niall eyed it with slight distaste.

 

“Daddy, that’s mean.”

 

Harry raised an eyebrow. “Why is it mean, honey?”

 

“Because it’s mean,” Niall repeated firmly, clearing not having a sensible answer.

 

“It’s not mean,” Harry told him patiently. “Now let’s get our teeth cleaned and our jammies on.”

 

It took some time for Niall to get over his phase. Having the other crib helped, but even so, he still made an appearance to the master bedroom for several nights. Over time it went from every night to a few times a week, and eventually hardly anytime at all.

 

Sometimes Harry would still wake up and feel the need to go into the nursery, where he would find both of his babies sleeping soundly and unharmed.

 

No matter what phases they went through, Harry would still always love his babies more than anything in the world. Besides, there were worse phases out there that littles could develop. At least the boys didn’t hoard dirt and worms in their diapers anymore; Harry still shudders to think about that old phase.

  
But even then, they were still the best babies in the world.

* * *

 

Check out some _Day by Day, Night by Night_ facts/snippets [here](https://bashfulbabybottlepop.tumblr.com/post/158608758133/day-by-day-night-by-night-fact-list-3) if you enjoy the series! 

**Author's Note:**

> Any feedback would be much appreciated!


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